Mountain
by VexVulpes
Summary: A pointless oneshot involving Ness and Porky in the mountains of Onett.


Steps leading to this pointless fluff:  
1. Take one EarthBound fan that adores the Porky/Ness couple  
2. Chuck fan in the mountains for a weekend, where she realizes Onett = Mountain town  
3. Add a good rain/hailstorm when exploring to spark plot

Also trying a bit of something new here; writing in first person PoV. Mostly so that I can possibly post this on the Tumblr I made for Nessie.

Whelp, I hope you enjoy.

* * *

I'm not originally from Onett.

Most people don't really seem to know. After all, my family has lived in Onett since around the time Tracy was born. It's not until I open my mouth and speak up that people realize that I was actually born in Snowman, a small winter town with a population of about 15 people and a temperature that's rarely ever above freezing. Kind of funny, really. I look nothing like my mom, yet my accent is completely identical to hers. Then again, I spent more time with her than my dad...

Anyway, we moved to Onett because of my dad's job. I was young at the time, about five with my sixth birthday coming up, and Tracy was just starting to show as a bump on mom's tummy. I remember being amazed at all the green on the ground and the flowers that were blooming everywhere. Grass was the strangest of the plants I encountered. It covered the ground instead of the thick snow and ice I had grown to know for the past five, nearly six, years of my life and I'd spend hours running around barefoot and wiggling my toes as it prickled my feet. I can't even begin to count how many socks I lost doing this.

Another thing that amazed me was the mountains. Snowman didn't have mountains. No, in Snowman we had all these hills and vast forests filled with wolves and polar bears. One of the first things I wanted to do once we reached our new home was to go into the mountains and take in everything, but none of my parents could take me and they didn't want me going by myself. During the week of unpacking before school started, I would stare longingly out the window, imagining walking along mountain paths as I looked down at the town of Onett below... Dad, during a rare moment of being home, would always tell me I should be happy that we were living right at the mountain's base, just high enough to technically be living in the actual mountain.

Not that it actually counted.

It was about a week later when I met my neighbor for the first time. It was the first day of kindergarten and, for me, my first day of ever being in school. I was scared, but at the same time excited and eager to learn. The teacher had assigned seats and I was placed right next to him. I was honestly intimidated by him at first; he was much larger than the other kids and he always seemed tense and hostile towards others. Still, there was something about him, something that made me walk up to him and ask his name. He looked surprised, as well as a bunch of other kids. I didn't know at the time that he was pretty much the class chew toy, constantly being teased and picked on and rejected by others. I didn't know that being nice to him would make the others reject me too. All I knew, at that moment, was that I wanted to be friends with this person, Porky Minch.

And I got my wish. You know how sometimes things just click into place instantly? That's basically what happened to us. Something in that first meeting clicked and before long we were doing everything together, from school work to playing in the yard with my dog King. Wherever one went, the other was sure to be there. We told each other everything. Well, almost everything. I never mentioned that I thought I had powers and he never talked about his home life, though sometimes I would see ugly bruises that spoke louder than any words.

This went on for years.

I was eight years old when I finally got to explore the mountains I had dreamed of for so many years. I remember it so clearly, even to this day. It all started when I was laying in the grass just outside my house in the summer. Dad was at work and mom had taken Tracy with her to go shopping for groceries. Suddenly Porky showed up with his backpack, wearing a ratty looking coat that was too big for even him. He was walking with a bit of a limp and, somehow, I could feel the pain he was in. Just as I opened my mouth to say hello though he placed a finger to his lips and pointed at my house, a silent plea to talk inside. Like always, I obeyed, closing the door behind us just as he tossed me my backpack.

"You always say you wanna go in the mountains, right?" I eagerly nodded, hugging the backpack close. "Well we're going. Grab a jacket and pack some food."

Words can't even begin to describe how excited I was. I ran around the house getting everything I needed, Porky occasionally butting in to tell me what I could and couldn't bring. Once I was packed we set off, me skipping and prancing about as Porky led the way. I was probably really annoying, but I couldn't help it. Finally, after years of staring up at the place I wanted to explore more than anything, I was finally going to go there. All the while I would stop and bombard Porky with questions about the different things we saw. You'd be surprised to know that Porky is really knowledgeable when it comes to plants and animals; every time I asked about something, he would tell me all about it, from its name to its role in the mountain's environment. We did this for hours, not stopping until it started to get dark out.

At this point I was starting to get a bit scared. I'd never been out after dark before. Usually mom would come outside and collect me just as the sun was starting to set and the sky was still on fire with oranges and pinks. While Porky stared up at the sky I latched onto his arm, causing him to look down at me. "Pokey, souldn' we go 'ome now?"

He shook his head, pulling my hat down over my eyes. "In a bit, alright? Besides, I brought a flashlight. We can go back anytime we want." As I readjusted my hat he pulled the flashlight out of his bag, turning it on and shining it around us. We had hiked quite a ways up and were well above the area where the trees stop growing. Instead of trees, flowers were the plant that grew everywhere and I immediately forgot about my desire to go home as I started asking questions again, questions that Porky had no problem answering. He knew the name of every flower in that area and even showed me how to tell similar flowers apart by looking at their leaves and petals. My questions died out as the sun vanished however, taking the warmth of summer with it. For a second, I could have sworn that winter had come out of nowhere as I hugged my jacket close. Porky must have noticed because he stopped in the middle of an explanation and motioned towards where we had come from. "I'm guess we should head home now, huh?"

I nodded, shivering. He was just about to say something else when there was an ugly rumbling sound, followed by a downpour of rain and blistering winds. I'm certain I would have been blown away if Porky hadn't have snatched my wrist and dragged me back towards the trees. He was saying something, but the wind was a deafening howl and the rain was so heavy we couldn't see anything even with the flashlight. Suddenly there was this blinding flash and I screamed as a booming thunderclap followed afterwards, stumbling and tripping over something. Pain shot through my leg and I remember screaming even louder than before, my vision kind of going white as Porky bent down and repeated my name as loud as he could over the storm. When I didn't respond he picked me up and continued heading towards the trees. Eventually we managed to make it and I was set against this rocky sort of wall that had a bit of rock hanging out over us, providing some shelter. Things were kind of blurring though from the pain of my throbbing ankle, made worse by Porky poking and prodding it before he sighed.

"Twisted. You won't be able to walk on it."

At this point things became too much as my eyes watered and I sniffled, on the verge of tears. "Pokey, 'm scaya'ed..."

"Don't be. I'll get you home safely, alright?" I tried to nod, but flinched as another clap of thunder sounded. Porky didn't scold me or anything, instead crouching down next to me and offering to carry me all the way back, an offer that I immediately accepted. The walk down wasn't as fun as the walk up; everything was cold and the rain was so heavy that we were drenched to the bone in mere seconds. Not to mention my ankle was killing me and I really miss my mom and sister...

"Don't get so sad," Porky suddenly huffed, not slowing down his pace despite obviously being tired from walking and carrying me. I wasn't exactly sure how he knew I was starting to get miserable and somewhat homesick, but his words were a little comforting as he continued, his breath coming out in puffs. "You're supposed to be the happy and carefree one here. So what if there's a little rain and you bummed up your ankle? I bet you we'll get back in no time. Who knows, maybe your mom made you steak or something." My response was another sniffle as I buried my face in the back of his neck. Porky sighed loudly before pointing his flashlight above us to the trees, launching into a mostly one-sided conversation about the different species around us and how to tell them apart by their cones and needles. As he talked I couldn't help but listen intently, eager to know more. This went on for who knows how long and soon I found myself drifting off.

When I woke up, I was in my bed, mom fussing over me while talking to a doctor. Porky was nowhere in sight, but I assumed that he was probably back in his home. I was hoping he would be ok when mom noticed I was up and held me close, crying and scolding me for leaving so suddenly without leaving a note and demanding to know what had happened. Not being able to lie to my own mother I told her everything, excitedly repeating the facts that Porky had told me about the mountains. As I talked the doctor chuckled while placing a note on my dresser and leaving, saying that if I was this lively, then I was going to be fine.

I didn't really get in serious trouble for my actions. Mom debated keeping me under lock and key for the rest of my life, but eventually decided that boys would be boys and told me to leave a note next time. Porky meanwhile was absent for a few days, telling me he didn't want to talk about it when I asked him if he got in trouble for our adventure. We did still go in the mountains afterwards though. We just made sure we were more prepared the next several times.

And in all honesty, those days in the mountains were some of the best in my life.


End file.
